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ThunderCats have been everywhere lately. The 1984 animated series about a group of warrior cat-people has enjoyed a resurgence of popularity lately due in no small part to the amazing new animated series currently airing on Cartoon Network. And of course, no retro pop culture franchise is complete without a line or lines of collectibles. Several companies have taken up the reins to produce toys based on both the classic series as well as the new cartoon. While Bandai is doing toys, Hard Hero is producing small-scale “statues” and Mezco has 12” scale roto figures, no one was producing high-end collectibles until Pop Culture Shock announced they were doing a series of Mixed Media Statues based on characters in the classic cartoon series. Designed by Jerry Macaluso, Lion-O is the premier piece in what is hopefully an ongoing collectibles line featuring larger than life, stylized portrayals of your favorite denizens of Third Earth.

Lion-O comes packaged in a massive full-color box featuring photography of the statue along with comic art and the iconic ThunderCats logo. The exclusive version also has a special sticker on the front of the box noting the additional feature. The statue is protected by a molded Styrofoam shell and is separated into 5 pieces: figure, battery compartment, base, and the two sword options.

The figure itself is certainly a sight to behold, commanding a dominating presence within your collection with its sheer size. Standing at an impressive 32 inches from the base to the tip of his mighty sword, Lion-O is not only large in height but also in build with his muscles bulging out in every direction. The character has been given a stylized overhaul making Lion-O stocky and overly muscular with oversized appendages. Lion-O’s skin is textured to give it a hairy look which flows well over the laid out musculature. His head is elongated and highlighted by a protruding jaw, gaping maw, and flowing mane of hair.

Being that this is a mixed media statue, Lion-O’s trademark blue "leotard" is made from a form-fitting, lycra-like material with an open abdomen to show off his six-pack. The suit comes apart via Velcro fasteners on the shoulders which allow you to access the hidden battery compartment on his back. This feature is only available on the Sideshow Exclusive version, and along with the hidden button in his lower back, allows you to light up Lion-O’s eyes and sword. This feature looks so cool, that I quite frankly can’t see owning this piece without the light-up feature. The statue comes with two different Sword of Omens accessories that can be swapped out on the piece. The first is the classic ThunderCats logo while the other is the cat’s eye that appears when Lion-O does the “Sight Beyond Sight” ability.

The pose chosen for Lion-O on the statue has him with one foot resting up on a rock, lunging forward with his sword straight up in the air. This is very reminiscent of a comic cover done for ThunderCats #1 by WildStorm a few years ago. While this domineering pose looks cool, it also leads to the statue’s only negative point. Because of the overly large figure leaning forward on a smaller base, it makes the statue incredibly top heavy and I found that I don’t necessarily trust the stability of the statue. It may be due to the small felt feet on the bottom of the base, but I found that the sample I got tends to wobble a bit thus making it way too easy for it to just topple over if given a big enough bump.

Despite its minor stability issue, I can safely say that the Lion-O Mixed Media Statue is currently the definitive ThunderCats collectible on the market. With its massive size and incredible sculpting, all other Lion-O collectibles look small and boring by comparison. With an equally awesome-looking Mumm-Ra coming early next year, the quality of these two pieces makes me even more excited to see what comes next in this impressive line.

Currently, both the regular and Sideshow Exclusive versions of the Lion-O Mixed Media Statue are available in-stock at Sideshow Collectibles. While a little more in terms of cost at $374.99, the Exclusive version with light-up feature is definitely worth investing in, and at a limited edition of 375, the remaining pieces are sure to sell out very soon! Check out our photo gallery below for even more images of the ThunderCats LION-O Mixed Media Statue.